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African Social Science Review Volume 6 | Number 1 Article 2 August 2014 Questioning the Constitutionality of Sharia Law in Some Nigerian States Chinelo Okekeocha Andrew I.E. Ewoh Texas Southern University, [email protected] Follow this and additional works at: http://digitalscholarship.bjmlspa.tsu.edu/assr Recommended Citation Okekeocha, Chinelo and Ewoh, Andrew I.E. (2014) "Questioning the Constitutionality of Sharia Law in Some Nigerian States," African Social Science Review: Vol. 6: No. 1, Article 2. Available at: http://digitalscholarship.bjmlspa.tsu.edu/assr/vol6/iss1/2 This Article is brought to you for free and open access by Barbara Jordan Mickey Leland School of Public Affairs - Digital Scholarship. It has been accepted for inclusion in African Social Science Review by an authorized administrator of Barbara Jordan Mickey Leland School of Public Affairs - Digital Scholarship. For more information, please contact [email protected]. African SocialOkekeocha Science Review and Ewoh: Questioning the Constitutionality of Sharia LawVolume in Some 6, Number Nigerian 1, Spring 2013 Questioning the Constitutionality of Sharia Law in Some Nigerian States Chinelo Okekeocha and Andrew I. E. Ewoh Kennesaw State University Abstract: In 2000, Governor Sani Ahmed of Zamfara State introduced an Islamic law popularly known as Sharia in his state and eleven other northern states immediately followed suit. He opined in his defense that the Nigerian constitution gave the states an implied power to enact such law, thus rekindling a contentious debate on the role of religion in the country. The analysis begins with an examination of the constitutionality of the Sharia law and its consequences on citizens where such law operates. This is followed by an explication of reactions in Sharia states and the federal government‟s concern about the issue at stake. In sum, the article concludes with some policy implications of the Sharia law in a few northern states in the country. Keywords: Sharia law, constitutionality, northern states, federalism, public policy Introduction Nigeria operates under a federal system of governance where political power is shared between the national and state governments. This type of authority reduces the chances of corruption and abuse of power, and it was readapted on May 29, 1999 after sixteen years of military rule. In terms of religion, the country is uniquely split in half between Christians and Muslims, Christians are the majority in the southern region, while Muslims dominate the northern part of the country (Nigeria Christians Flee 2012). In 2000, Governor Ahmed of Zamfara State introduced an Islamic law commonly known as Sharia in his state, and eleven other northern states immediately followed suit. In the Governor‘s defense, he argued that the Nigerian constitution empowers the states to create a religious law, thus rekindling a contentious debate on the power of states. Since the Sharia law was first introduced during Nigeria‘s transition from autocratic governance to democratic governance, it is probable that any perceived crisis with its re- introduction could lead to an upheaval. The current strife between the northern states that enacted the law and the federal government on its constitutionality is a wakeup call on what the future holds. Using an exploratory case study method, this analysis begins with an examination of the constitutionality of the Sharia law and its consequences on citizens in states that have enacted the law. This is followed by an explication of reactions between states that have the law and the federal government‘s concern over its implementation. In sum, the article concludes with some policy implications of the imposition of the Sharia law in a few northern states in Nigeria. Democracy in Nigeria Nigeria is the most populous democratic country in Africa with a federal system of government. Under this system, there are three branches of government: the executive, the legislative and the judiciary. This structure of government makes it impossible for any 15 Published by Barbara Jordan Mickey Leland School of Public Affairs - Digital Scholarship, 2014 1 African Social Science ReviewAfrican Social Science Review, Vol. 6, No. 1 [2014], Art.Volume 2 6, Number 1, Spring 2013 single branch to have full power, and reduces the risk of tyranny because each branch checks and balances the other. In a federal system, states come together to relegate some of their sovereignty within a defined context, to form a nation due to the benefits that accrue from sharing common resources with each other rather than remaining independent little entities (O‘Toole 2007). In this type of government, the ultimate authority lies at the top of this hierarchy, known as the federal level. Nigeria returned to a federal system of governance on May 29, 1999 after sixteen years of military rule and has thirty-six states including an inclusive federal capital territory. Nigeria has a long history of transitioning between democratic and autocratic system of governance. It was initially colonized by the British and later gained full independence on October 1st 1960, and comprised of three regions: northern, western, and eastern. During this time, Nigeria operated under a constitution that was similar to that of the British system, and each region had a certain degree of sovereignty but the national government was given exclusive powers in the areas of defense, foreign relations, commercial and fiscal policies. In this parliamentary system, the northern region had more seats than the eastern and western region combined, which makes it difficult for a major decision to be made in government without the approval of the north. Both the easterners and westerners did not like this political structure because it meant that the northerners could control Nigeria forever. There were two solutions that could alter the northern hegemony; one would be through a constitutional amendment (which was unlikely since the North controlled the parliament and would not want to give it up) and the other option would be through a violent takeover by the South (Siollun 2005) In 1963, Nigeria became a federal republic and annexed the Midwest as the fourth region of the country, and established a federal system with three branches of government: executive, legislative and judicial and also three levels of government; federal, state and local government to share political power and the country‘s resources (U.S. Department of State 2011). In this system, the north still had a majority seat in government, thus in 1966, the military took over through a coup d‘état and assumed full control of the country because it felt the people in office were abusing governmental power. Coup d‘états are sudden overthrow of governments which are usually done by the army. In the case of Nigeria, this coup was orchestrated by junior officers in the army because some northerners felt that it was an attempt by the Igbo people of the eastern region to dominate the country. Following the coup d‘état, General Ironsi, an Igbo military leader, emerged as the new head of state and decreed that the federal system of government would be replaced with a unitary system, because he believed that an autocratic military regime with centralized power was the best fit for the country. The northerners did not approve this transition in government because they felt marginalized and, as a result, orchestrated a countercoup six months afterwards to get rid of General Ironsi and regain the control of government (U.S. Library of Congress 1991) Nigeria went through a series of coup d‘états from 1966 to 1976 and four military head of states within that time spans assumed the control of government. In 1976, General Olusegun Obasanjo, a former military head of state decided to relinquish his military power into the hands of civilian leaders. Consequently, President Shehu Shagari emerged as the first democratically elected leader in over a decade citizens had high hopes for his presidency as a change from tyranny and autocratic rule to a new era of 16 http://digitalscholarship.bjmlspa.tsu.edu/assr/vol6/iss1/2 2 African SocialOkekeocha Science Review and Ewoh: Questioning the Constitutionality of Sharia LawVolume in Some 6, Number Nigerian 1, Spring 2013 government accountability. However, President Shagari was later accused of corruption and electoral fraud. Similarly, the country experienced an economic decline under his leadership, coupled with religious and political violence. For these reasons, President Shagari was overthrown by a military leader, General Muhammadu Buhari in 1983, and this coup was welcomed by most Nigerians (U.S. Department of State 2011). After General Buhari‘s military takeover, he was overthrown two years later via another coup d‘état that paved the way for General Ibrahim Badamasi Babangida to become the new military leader. General Babangida held his position for almost a decade, before deciding to legalize the formation of political parties in 1989. Surprisingly, he banned all political parties in 1992 and formed two major ones; named them Social Democratic Party and National Republican Convention, and encouraged all Nigerians to join either party. Although Babangida allowed elections to be held and the majority voted for Chief Moshood Kashimawo Olawale Abiola as the new president, he annulled the results and remained in office. This action angered the citizens and led to a mass protest (U.S. Department of State 2011). Knowing that Nigerians were infuriated by his actions, General Babangida selected Ernest Shonekan as the interim president. During his short tenure in office, Ernest Shonekan tried to implement measures for a democratic nation but his efforts proved futile because he was overthrown. Shonekan‘s abrupt dismal came as a result of his neglect for the military, and his appointed defense secretary devised a coup d‘état to remove him in November of 1993, just a few months in office. General Sani Abacha became the new head of state under military rule with no promise of a democratic government in sight (U.S.

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